When I listen to Aleks Syntek, I hear a gazillion influences -- influences that are often the music of my own generation. Mostly from songs that were on the cutting edge of album oriented rock of the 1980s. I hear licks and riffs from everyone from the Police to the Cars, but if I had to pick one single sound that was closest to Aleks Syntek, I'd peg it to be the "artist" formerly, currently, and forever known as Prince. But I also hear influences of R&B, rap, 60s Motown tunes, disco, and just about everything in between. It's an amorphous mix that blends masterfully under Syntek's hand to create a stylish modern sound that comes off as the art deco of the pop music world.

There's something of a retro edge to Syntek's sound, and it's a mistake to try to pigeon hole him into any one kind of sound, because he's a versatile musician with the ability to change his sound faster than a chameleon changing colors. One minute you've got a heavy metal drum solo that could put Tommy Lee to shame, and then the next you've got this mellow piano solo that's a throwback to Burt Bacharach. In between you've got all sorts of wiggliness, from techno keyboard sound effects, to the boom-be-boom-bah-bow sound that's something of a Syntek trademark, to the absolutely bizarre banjo solo complete with "yippe-yi-yay" sounds that sound straight out of a bizarre Nashville lampoon.

This all works together to give Aleks Syntek a very unique sound with a far richer palate than most music fans can handle. It's probably why Syntek has never become a household name, even in Mexico where his largest fan base can be found. I suppose the same kind of problem plagues everyone who is too modern or cutting edge. After all, the mass market never truly embraced Frank Zappa either, but then he was sometimes just plain bizarre.

Syntek is never bizarre, but he certainly has a style, a sophistication, and a depth of richness that go far beyond what your typical teeny-bopper pop fan is capable of feeding into their little ears. Give it a listen, and I think you'll be impressed...

Survival of the Fittest...
What do you want from your music? Coolness? Sophistication? Intelligence? Humor? All that and more is what you get from Aleks Syntek -- the kind of dude I definitely want to party with!!

I can tell Syntek has the right kind of zest for living from the title track of this CD, De Noche en la Ciudad. The lyrics are witty, they're casual, they're fun. "Check out the lights! It's night in the city....you have a date with me. We're gonna go dancing, a little dining, some wining, un besito por aqui, un besito por alla (actually I ripped off those lyrics from an Arkangel R-15 tune, but they're in the same spirit of Syntek's song), then we're goin' for a ride in my Cadillac! Oh yeah!"

Hey! I'm all up for dressing up to the nines, heading out for a night on the town, and cruising around in a Cadillac. Sure as heck sounds like a better time than being yet one more piece of poor gutter trash stuck in the trailer park on a Saturday night, listening to grunge rock while drinking Busch Light beer!!

De Noche en la Ciudad is cool, stylish, and fun. It's got a bouncy sound and it's got the odd sound effect to keep listeners on their toes -- that twangy banjo sound here, a techno keyboard sound effect there, and heck -- let's even throw in a smoke alarm -- worked for the B-52s! (Okay, so it actually sounded like dog doo when the B-52s did it on Planet Claire some 20 years ago, it sounds stylish for Syntek. Trust me on this.)

I was watching HTV one night when they did the video of De Noche en la Ciudad and all I could say was "Wow! I wanna be Syntek." The guy is surrounded by a bevy of bewitching beauties as he cruises around Vegas (in his Cadillac with the top down), "...mirando luces, luces de noche en la ciudad..." Being the stylish kind of guy he is, of course he also plays the roulette tables like James Bond (but Syntek looks more suave in a tux) and flashes wads of cash (complete with pictures of his stylized mug instead of old George's). Padrisimo!

The second-best song on this album is Fiesta. This is a fast-paced, techno dance tune with mostly nonsensical lyrics along the lines of "Boo be doo bee doo bee", except Syntek's chorus is "De como como Wang Bang Chubiri Wang Bang". When I first heard the tune, the Wang Bang immediately made me think of Wang Chung, and surprisingly, the song also bears some resemblance in tempo and feel to the 1986 hit, Everybody Have Fun Tonight. Personally, I'd rather Wang Bang Chubiri Wang Bang than Wang Chung Tonight, but hey, that's just me...

Clonacion is kind of eerie. It almost seems to get into the head of someone who can't draw the line between flattering imitation and harassing stalking, but at the same time, it's just kind of weird. Two peso translation: "I want more, more than you can imagine. Everything about you is me. I want to go to your parties, to dress like you. I want your food. Your drink. I'm nothing without you. I just want to be a clone of you." I think somebody needs to get out a little more...

By the way, Clonacion is also one of the songs that I think most closely resembles the Prince sound of the 1980s. Whether or not that is a good thing depends on how you feel about the Minneapolis Wonder Boy. Personally, I can take him or leave him (preferably leave him).

I kind of like the rap-like opening of Solo Por Ti, but I really like the way it slowly shifts into an R&B cadence. It's got some great drum solos too!

I hear a lot of very different influences on this CD. While Prince is the predominant model, I also hear a clear Beatles influence on Nuestro Jardin, some Cars influence in the opening riffs of Solo Buscamos, and the images of Culture Club in Karma Mortal are deeper than a simple song title similarity...

These disparate influences all work together to give Syntek a very stylish sound -- a morphosis that is peculiarly his own. Although De Noche en la Ciuidad is far and away the best song on this album, the rest of the work exhibits a craftsmanship that warrants further listening.

About Aleks Syntek...
Aleks Syntek is a perennial show-biz maven. Born and raised in Merida Yucatan, he was known to a generation of Mexicans as a sort of goofy kid from his role in the popular TV series Chiquilladas. As an adult, he's made a name for himself as kind of pop genius, able to coin jingles and theme songs for TV ads (he's recorded commercials for everyone from McDonalds to Volkswagen) -- at least when he wasn't busy with his pop-rock group, La Gente Normal.

Although Syntek is unquestionably part of the pop marketplace, he stands apart from the crowd with his ability to create and innovate. While most pop acts couldn't write a song or compose a note to save their lives, Syntek typically writes all of his own material and composes the keyboard work. I've always unapologetically had more respect for musical acts that create their own material, and Syntek is firmly in that camp. A solid guy with modern sensibilities -- not to mention an excellent CD.

Trackin' Tracks...
A lucky thirteen tracks give you almost 44 minutes of techno pop enjoyment. Here's what's in store for you...

1. Clonacion
2. De Noche en la Ciudad
3. Por Volverte a Ver
4. Tuve Angeles
5. Para Ti
6. Llename de Amor
7. Solo Por Ti
8. Nuestro Jardin
9. Solo Buscamos
10. Mas Que Decir
11. Karma Mortal
12. La Fiesta
13. Bendito Tu Corazon

Until next time, I'll see you in the music store. As always, look for me in the Latin Music aisle...



Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Getting ready to go out